Posted September 20, 2014
in Ten Questions With, Ten Questions With...
Ten Questions With… Forest San Filippo (Flippfly LLC)
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We thoroughly enjoyed our time with Race The Sun, the addictive endless racer by Flippfly. The game had us completely hooked so we were delighted when Forest San Filippo agreed to answer some of our questions.
Can you give our readers a quick introduction of yourself and the studio?
We are a tiny company made up of two brothers (Aaron and Forest) who quit our day jobs to make indie games. Aaron comes from a background in AAA games, and Forest has a background in graphic design.
How did the idea for Race The Sun come about?
The idea really started with a simple Google Sketchup scene. Aaron came to me with this image of a big open plane and a few sparse objects. He said something like: “Wouldn’t it be great to race through this at extreme speed?”. From there he made a prototype and we were convinced that the game needed to be made.
What are the games that influenced you and how?
We a really influenced by 90s era Nintendo games like Star Fox and Super Mario. The pure fun of those games is a constant reminder of what we are shooting for in ours.
What features of Race The Sun are you the most proud of?
I suppose that we each have our own favorites. I really like the world portals that take you to worlds created by players. The solar-power mechanic is pretty fun as well. I can’t think of another game where dynamic shadows play such a big role in gameplay.
What was the biggest challenge while creating Race The Sun?
Getting the controls to feel just right was a pretty big challenge. We knew that they had to strike a near-perfect balance, and it took a lot of trial and error to get there.
What aspect of the game was the most fun to create?
Aaron designed a custom level-editor to build the game, and that made level design a lot of fun. You can come up with an idea and get it into the game in a few minutes!
In hindsight is there anything you would have changed about the game?
We initially shipped the game with a limited multiplayer feature. It turned out that the implementation wasn’t very fun at all. In hindsight, we should have left that out. It just wasn’t worth the time investment.
What are the future plans for Flipfly/Race The Sun?
Well, we recently announced a puzzle game called Hexarden. We are really excited about taking everything we’ve learned and pouring it into a new game.
What is the most unusual thing on your desk right now?
Hmm… probably a Christmas card that arrived in March. I still don’t quite understand what it means 🙂
Anything else you would like to add?
Gaming and game development is really exciting right now. The art form is maturing and we are seeing tons of interesting new games hit the market. We are incredibly grateful to be able to make games in this crazy, turbulent and fun environment.
Many thanks to Forest for taking the time to answer some of our questions. You can check out our review of Race The Sun HERE and buy yourself a copy from Steam. For more information check out the official Flippfly website.
